SeaRAM stands guard

With precision and power, missile launcher protects U.S. ships

A Raytheon-built system batted two supersonic ballistic missiles out of the sky at the same time, in a test that validated its ability to protect the U.S. Navy’s new shallow-water fighters and other ships.

The SeaRAM system, firing from a U.S. Navy test ship off the coast of southern California, intercepted the targets as they flew simultaneously and performed evasive maneuvers. Raytheon modeled SeaRAM after its Phalanx Close-in Weapon System, replacing the 20mm gun with a launcher that fires up to 11 RAM® guided missiles.

“SeaRAM achieved a new level of success today, intercepting targets under high-stress conditions,” said Rick Nelson, vice president of Raytheon’s Naval and Area Mission Defense product line. “The system demonstrated once again that it can provide the sophisticated protection warfighters need.”

While testing was underway, the U.S. Navy was working alongside Raytheon to install the SeaRAM system on the USS Porter and three other guided missile destroyers stationed in Rota, Spain. The system installation was a rapid response to protect naval ships deployed in Europe.

The USS Porter became the first guided missile destroyer to launch a RAM missile from a SeaRAM system on March 4.

In a separate test earlier this year, the system recorded its first-ever intercept using the RAM Block 2 variant. That demonstration followed a similarly successful launch last year, in which a SeaRAM system fired a RAM Block 1 missile from the littoral combat ship USS Coronado.

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